The Current Situation in Sudan

Sudan, Africa's largest country, is located in Northern Africa bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea. Around 37 million people live in the Sudan.

Apart from an 11-year period of peace, Sudan it has been torn by civil war since its independence in 1956. The strife is mainly between the mostly Muslim north and the animist and Christian south.


Sudan's size, great ethnic and religious diversity make building a sense of national unity difficult. The current regime rules through massive repression and genocide.


The conflicts have left Sudan one of the poorest nations in the world. Persistent warfare and lack of financing are blocking needed infrastructure improvement. Displacement of the population, drought and desertification have also contributed to the crisis.

Current president, Omar Bashir was reelected in 2001 for 5 years, but the elections were boycotted by the main opposition parties. The Machakos Protocol of July 2002, signed by both the government and the two largest southern rebel groups, provides for a referendum on self-determination in the south after a 6-year interval. Despite signing, the Muslim-led Sudanese government has continued to attack southern Christian groups.

There is evidence of widespread enslavement of blacks in the south. The Sudanese government has practiced one of the largest cases of genocide since Rwanda killing thousands in 2004. A peace agreement was signed on January 9, 2005.

       
Although economic potential exists with the discovery of major oil fields in the south, the government has attempted to establish safe enclaves for the exploitation of these oil fields at the cost of relocating the people living in the area. Unfortuantely funds generated by the oil fields are being used by the government to finance the war against its peoples in the south.

Drought and the desertification are major environmental concerns for Sudan. A lasting peace with resolution for the people in the south that curtails enslavement and genocide is absolutely mandatory for Sudan to improve its economy and quality of life for all its people.